Students Curate Exhibit on “America’s Birthdays”

As the nation commemorates its semiquincentennial anniversary in 2026, students in my new course HIS 304: America’s Birthdays: The History of Celebration and Memory have spent the semester learning about the history of other milestone “Birthday” events—in 1876, 1926, and 1976, as well as the history of the July 4 holiday. 

In addition to learning about commemoration, students have learned about public history—that is, history done for and with the public—which is a strength of the Rutgers–Camden Department of History.

The course culminated in a “hands-on history” project—an exhibit titled “America’s Birthdays: Selling & Redefining the American Dream,” now on display at Robeson Library. When you visit the library, check out the students’ work in the front display cases. 

Each student in the course selected an item to display, wrote exhibit label text, and worked collaboratively to complete the exhibit. We worked together on interpretation, design, editing and proofreading, promotion, and installation of the exhibit. 

On April 30, thanks to Robeson Library, especially librarians Regina Khoury and John Powell, we hosted an opening reception to unveil the exhibit and share our work. 

In the introductory panel, the students write: “For 250 years, Americans have looked back to the founding. We have endlessly cheered, debated, and tried to understand the Declaration of Independence. America’s “birthdays”—like annual July 4 fireworks, as well as landmark anniversaries in 1876, 1926, and 1976—have been occasions for celebration and reflection alike. Our class has explored these events to better understand the nation’s history and how we remember it. We have each selected an item to showcase the variety of ways Americans marked these birthdays. Together, they reveal two dimensions of our shared identity: on the one hand, spectacle and consumerism, and on the other, the unfinished work of Revolution.”

Photos courtesy of John Powell.